KATHMANDU, Nov 1: The Public Procurement Monitoring Office has blacklisted 120 firms and companies since March 27.
The office, which operates under the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers at Singha Durbar, blacklisted the firms for failing to comply with prevailing public procurement laws and procedures and meet their contractual obligations, according to the Prime Minister's Office.
Seven construction companies blacklisted
Since the formation of the current government, the office has introduced various reforms to make the public procurement system more transparent, competitive and reliable.
As part of these efforts, the second amendment to the Public Procurement Act, 2007, and the 15th and 16th amendments to the Public Procurement Regulations, 2007, have been implemented.
The office has also revised nine types of standard bidding documents (SBDs) for the procurement of goods and construction works in line with the changes to the Act and Regulations.
To enhance the capacity of employees involved in procurement, the office has trained 712 personnel—556 through its own programmes and another 156 in partnership with various public agencies.
The government says it is committed to maintaining discipline, fair competition and accountability in public procurement.